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Gigabyte GA-EP45-DQ6 Intel P45 Express Motherboard Review
Gigabyte GA-EP45-DQ6 Intel P45 Express Motherboard Review  - PCSTATS
In addition to the P45 chipset's inherent PCI Express 2.0 and dual videocard Crossfire support, Gigabyte's EP45-DQ6 motherboard boasts no less than four gigabit network ports, ten SATA channels, three IEEE1394 Firewire and twelve USB2.0 ports!
 83% Rating:   
Filed under: Motherboards Published:  Author: 
External Mfg. Website: Gigabyte Jan 13 2009   Max Page  
Home > Reviews > Motherboards > Gigabyte GA-EP45-DQ6

Gigabyte EP45-DQ6 Highlights Gallery


The Gigabyte EP45-DQ6 motherboard has one PCI Express x1, two PCI Express x16 slots for videocards (one card gets you x16 mode, two in Crossfire operate in x8/x8 mode), two PCI Express x4 slots and two legacy 32-bit PCI slots for older expansion cards. Running along the bottom of the board are physical power/reset/clear CMOS buttons and headers for Firewire/USB and other assorted expansion options.


This region of the Gigabyte EP45-DQ6 motherboard is busy. Here we find the front panel IO connections, (10) SATAII headers, IDE and passively cooled IDT and Intel ICH10R southbridge chipsets.


With the passive heatsinks removed from this corner of the board you clearly see the IDT, Intel ICH10R southbridge and dual Silicon Image 5723 chipsets which bring four extra SATA2 channels to the EP45-DQ6 motherboard over what the Intel ICH10R provides.


The two SIL5723 connect to the Gigabyte SATA 2 (really a JM363 chip) to handle four SATA ports and the BIOS-based RAID system on the Gigabyte EP45-DQ6 motherboard. The Gigabyte SATA 2 is connected to the Intel ICH10R chipset by a PCI-e x1 path. The RAID system is driver and OS independent.


Four DDR2 DIMMs support up to 8GB of 667/800/1066/1200 MHz memory. The EP45-DQ6 motherboard requires a 24pin power connector as well as 8-pin auxiliary power. Just to the right of the DIMMs are the row of LEDs lights which indicate how many CPU power phases are in use.


Gigabyte Silentpipe is a passive heatpipe chipset thermal solution which connects the southbridge to northbridge to MOSFET chips that surround the socket 775 Intel CPU. There is enough space around the LGA775 socket for large after market coolers. This form of passive cooling makes use of exhaust air flow from the CPU heatsink, so if you go watercooling be sure to point a fan in this direction. Also not the use of solid state capacitors throughout the Gigabyte EP45-DQ6 motherboard.

Next PCSTATS will dive into BIOS and overclocking options, but first let's touch on the Intel P45 Express chipset and what it has to offer mainstream computer enthusiasts!

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Contents of Article: Gigabyte GA-EP45-DQ6
 Pg 1.  Gigabyte GA-EP45-DQ6 Intel P45 Express Motherboard Review
 Pg 2.  Gigabyte Dynamic Energy Saver Advance - Energy Efficiency
 Pg 3.  Total System Power Draw Comparisons
 Pg 4.  Gigabyte EP45-DQ6 Hands On Impressions
 Pg 5.  — Gigabyte EP45-DQ6 Highlights Gallery
 Pg 6.  Intel P45 Express and ICH10 Chipsets
 Pg 7.  Overclocking Test Report & Test System Specs
 Pg 8.  Motherboard Benchmarks: Sysmark 2007
 Pg 9.  Motherboard Benchmarks: Sandra XII 2008 Processor
 Pg 10.  Motherboard Benchmarks: Sandra XII 2008 Memory
 Pg 11.  Motherboard Benchmarks: PCMark Vantage
 Pg 12.  Motherboard Benchmarks: 3DMark Vantage, 3DMark06, FEAR
 Pg 13.  Is the Feature Bonanza Worth it?

 
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